Wish you were here..?

[Molloy]

Heheh.. it's become a cliche but every few years you play a game and think "cooweee.. niiiiice water effects!" And you promise you'll never be impressed by something as superficial as water effects until the next time.

That part in Ico where you splash around in the pool by the waterfall was the last time I really stopped because I wanted to take in the atmosphere. That whole game is phenominal. I'm usually pretty into my arcade game mechanics, absolutely hate adventure games but that game was evidence if any was needed that good atmosphere and graphic design can make up for other definciencies (although the level design was pretty phenominal as well so I don't know).

[mid]

Water effects? The first time I waded through a pool on Sands Of Time, definitely.

[evert]

swimming in the sea in Mario Sunshine was quite cool, too.

[importaku]

Zelda wind waker: Spent countless hours just looking up at the stars in first person view with the boat gently creaking in the wind, It's so relaxing. Eyetrek goggles on & lying on the bed

Giftpia: I could jump into any game world it would be this one. Nanashi island is amazing its full lush tropical trees & plants with lots of hidden places to explore plus the jungle sounds & crashing waves & waterfalls make it a fantastic escape.

Giftpia is a true masterpiece.

[Kubrick]

ICO - Only played this for the first time a few weeks ago, and found myself checking out the enviroment with the analogue stick in almost every section of the game. Was still very impressed despite what I've seen to date, but it must've looked amazing in 2001.

Biohazard 4 - Those "curtain" and "lava" rooms that have been mentioned also did it for me. Was also impressed by the large room that had the rocket launcher in the glass cabinet. Those plush carpets and stuff made that room feel "warm" compared to what had gone before.

[Concept]

Rain, night, lightning.

Resident Evil 4.

One of the most convincing gaming landscapes I've traversed. I don't usually find myself technically wowed these days, but that particular part of the game took me by surprise.

Unbelieveable for this generation.

[Tig]

Biohazard 4 - Those "curtain" and "lava" rooms that have been mentioned also did it for me. Was also impressed by the large room that had the rocket launcher in the glass cabinet. Those plush carpets and stuff made that room feel "warm" compared to what had gone before.

Sorry to stick to Resi4, but there's another room which impressed me even more than those. I gawped at it for about five minutes, but I can't quite remember where it was now. It was a dark, dank room in which everything was covered in dust... you could practically smell the must. Something about it seemed amazingly real. There was a shaft of light coming from a window - which illuminated hundreds of slowly-drifting dust specks. I just stood there watching the dust for ages.

Oh, and another place - the bedroom with the four-poster bed. I just stopped dead upon seeing that room. Stand still in the entrance, and it looks pre-rendered. Wow.

[MikeRox]

Sonic Adventure Emerald Coast really REALLY got to me.

I love well made scenery, especially with the processing power current consoles have, Resi 4 also impressed me, but more than that, I really love some of the F-Zero GX courses such as Port Town and that course with the lightning.

If the lighting effects are done right in games, that for me really makes something look complete, I loved the European Course on Burnout 1, the scenery all looked so perfect particularly as you went around the windy roads before that long suspension bridge with trees and cliff faces in the distance.

I guess goin back into the "retro days" the original Need for Speed and the "photorealistic" Road Rash also kinda had that wowing feeling to the scenery.

[tokyochojin]

FF7, Midgar absouloutely stunning. It has everything you could want in a city, including a whorehouse!

[SummAh]

Sonic Adventure emerald cost.
FFX
DOAU n 3 Stages
Orta
JSRF

Aha!...special mention to Splinter Cell 2...the raining stage...that n RE4 raining stage makes it one of the best i ever seen in a game.

[dc-arena]

Resident Evil 4
That curtain corridor in the castle. Outstanding.
The graveyard in the rain at night oO
Very early in the game with all the huts which have been burnt out by fire

Ico
The windmill. Ouuhhh.

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
When you have "fought" The Sorrow and you go back into the Jungle, with the bright green grass, and the deer, and the light shafts coming through the canopy. Just beautiful.

Sonic The Hedgehog 2
Hilltop
Skychase

LoZ: Wind Waker
Windfall Island. I loved everything about that island. The atmosphere, the people, the music. Day and night it was mint. If I could, I would of sat down by the pigs and just gazed at the horizon for ever.

Outrun2
The hilly one with the clouds you nearly touch, over the crest, and you can see forever.. So nice.

Metroid Prime 1+2
Err, pretty much all of it?


Sonic Adventure
Another for Emerald Coast here..

[Ady]

There was a street in Shenmue 2 lined with market sellers and food stalls. I remember stopping to look at my surroundings on that very street, observing the food vendors cooking their wares, people milling about, shoppers shopping etc...

You could almost smell the food cooking..

[Bassman]

Some of the environments in DOAU (DOA2) were superb.

I also liked the very laid back atmosphere on DOAXBV

GT4 of course looked superb. I was very impressed on the look of the game in Lan mode (2 player split screen looks almost like a PS1 game).

Jade Empire had some superb environments as well

Another mention for Oddworld: Strangers Wrath. Some nice detail touches.

Racing Battle C1 Grand Prix has some very nice lighting effects, such as going from a tunnel into the sunshine. Also there are some interesting lighting effects when you are driving towards the sun. The rain on the windscreen was nicely done as well.

[Zed]

Monster Hunter

When you're standing about in the grass in room 3 of Forest & Hills, watching a big Wyvern flap its way down to you, there's a few herbivores happily munching grass and the sun is shining dapled light thru the trees, in the distance you can see the land spread out, with rivers and waterfalls meandering about - it's like the calm before the storm.

Ok the graphics aren't stunning, but the feeling you get is of a very real world, and it is oh so inviting to just have a look about at times. Quality "wish you were here..." stuff!

Blah, blah ICO etc which has already been mentioned.